Expansion strip



NOV. 29, 1932. P. GALASSV 1,889y651 EXPANSION STRIP Filed Dec. ll. 1929ATTORNEY Patented Nov.V 29, 1932 UNITED STATES Yi'u-iseUALn annessi, orvNEW YORK, iv. Y.

EXPANSION STRIP Application filed Decelrlberl 11, 1929.1 Serial No.413,270.

This invention relates to improvements in means for laying andconstructing terrazzo and similar floors, and more particularly refersto dividing strips such as are used for 5 defining and separating thevarious panel sections of which a terrazzo floor is compo-sed.

Strips of this character have heretofore ,usually been made in one pieceof thek proper width and thickness according to requirements, saidstrips being generally provided with anchoringand positioning meansformed by isolating portions of the material and by bending saidisolated portions laterally of the strip.

i rFliese strips are generally made of brass or other suitable metal andare used in various thicknesses for ornamental'or structural reasons orboth. However, aheavy gauge metal is in most cases only used forornamental reasons, and therefore a thick section Y of metal is actuallyonly needed at the top where it shows through the floor. VIt is commonpractice,.on the other hand, to use metal of uniform gauge all through,and this is likely to considerably increase the cost ofthe floor,especially when brass is used. At times strips have been rolled inspecial shapes comprising` a relatively wide head porn tion and arelatively'thin body portion, but 50 these special shapes are bound tobe more expensive than standard materials of the same weight. Y y

Furthermore, as a general rule it is desirable to use brass only at thetop of the strip and to use a less expensive material for the 4bodythereof even when light gauge strips are concerned, for, the resultingsaving in the` cost of material is sufficient to profitably compensa@the increased labor costs entailed by the joining of the two portionsinto a single' structure. The vadvantage thus resulting is, of course,greater inthe case of strips having a relatively wide'section at thetop, as will be understood. In three other patents entitled,`Comp0siteflooring strip, Interlocking iioor strip, and Dividing strips, PatentNos. 1,718,041', 1,697,683 and 1,715,193 respectively, I have describedand yclaimed bimetallic strips comu posed of two sections interlockingwith each other by means of suitable'male and female joints of variousdescriptions. f i

The present invention is also directed to improvements in bimetallicstrips and its primary object is to provide dividing strips composed oftwo sections which may be made to interlock with each-Y otherV simply byapplying edgewise pressure against said two sections, the result beingastrong and dependablejoint, obtained at the cost of a relatively smallamount of labor.

vAnother object of. this invention is to provide a novel and improvedarrangement of bimetallic `strip composed of interlocking sectionswhereby the operation of oining the two sections together'v issimplified as compared with the structures described in my otherpatentsV above referred to.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will more fullyappear as the descriptionproceeds and will be set forth and claimed inthe appended claims.

Various embodiments of my invention are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawing, in which:

. Fig. 1 isa fragmentary view in perspective of a strip embodying myVinvention;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view in perspective of the two sectionscomposing said strip, bey fore theyare joined together;

Fig.V 3 is a vertical cross section of said two sections placed inposition ready for edgewise pressure to be applied; s

Fig. 4 is an end view of two sections composing another strip alsoembodying'my in- Q vention before they are ljoined together;

Fig.. 5 is a fragmentary View in perspective of the resulting strip;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary view in perspective of a strip obtained by thesame method as that illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5, said strip comprisinga bimetallicl head;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary view in perspective of another strip embodyingmy invention showing a different type ofjoint; I i

Fig. 8 is an end view ofthe two sections composing said strip beforethey are joined together; Y

Fig. 9 is acrosssection of thestrip shown in Fig. V1 in position;and

Fig. 10 is a cross section of another strip embodying my invention in astill diiferent form.

The strip illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3 comprises a lower section`10,which is made of sheet metal and an upper section 11 which is made ofbar stock drawn to shape. Said upper section is substantiallyrectangular in shape vand is provided with ay dove tailed longitudinalgroove 12 alongits lower surface. The lower section 10 ismade out of astrip of sheet metal and is made by first slitting the same downwardlyat spaced intervals from its upper edge a distance sufficient to isolateportions thereof, adapted to'form'retaining members such as 27, 28lconnecting the lower to the upper section.

Said retaining members are obtained by irst alternately bending to oneside and then to the other of the body of the lower section, theportionsisolated by the slitting operation mentioned, thus producing two seriesof spaced divergent lips such as shown at 27, l28, the transversaldistance between the edges of the lips composing the two series beingequal to or slightly less than the width of the opening of groove 12. n

, The two sections may be securely joined to each other by inserting theseries of divergent lips 27, 28'within groove 12'as shown in Fig. 3, andthen by applying edgewise pressure against the two sections ofthe strip.As a result of suchpressujre, the bottom of the groove abutting againstthe upper edge of lips 27, 28 will force'said lips to spread outwardlyagainst the sides of the dove tailed groove, as shown in Fig. 1, the twosections thus forming a rigid interlocking structure.

This method of joining the two sections together entails very littlelabor and therefore results in a rapid and relatively ineX- pensiveproduction. It is obvious that upper sections of various widths can beused without altering the construction of the lower section. i n YAlthough as stated, I prefer to make the transversal distance betweenthe edges of lips 27, 28 equal to or less than the width of theopeningsfof groove12, it is also possible to spread said two series oflips outwardly to a greater degree, and in such case the upper' part ofthe lower section will have to be -introduced within groove 12 endwise.

The subsequent application of edgewise pressure will also in this casecause further spreading of the lips and complete the joint. A similarmethod of joining sections of a strip mayalso be used without separatingtheupper edger of the lower section in order to form lips 27,28, ifsuficient pressure is applied to cause the metal to spread and fill thegroove.

An example of such a construction is shown in Figs. 4 and 5 where theupper section 29 is provided like in the previous instance with alongitudinal dove tailed groove 3() running along its lower surface, theopening of said groove being just wide enough to receive the upper edgeof the lower section 31. Also in this case after the upper edge of thelower section has been inserted within the groove edgewise pressure isapplied against the two sections and the upper edge of the lower sectionwill be deformed by the action of the pressure and compelled to spreadout filling the groove.

In either case the lower section is preferably provided with anchoringand positioning means, such as for instance, the open top cup members 32struck o the body of the strip as shown in Figs. 1 toS, or the ears 83shown in Figs. 4l land 5 bent laterally of the body of the lowersection, or other anchoring and positioning means of any suitablecharacter.

When the lower section is sliliciently heavy it is enough to insert itslower edge within a groove, the width of which corresponds to thethickness of said section, and to apply endwise pressure as described.However, if the lower section is of light gauge metal, it will benecessary to make the groove of a depth sufficient to receive the majorportion of said lower section leaving exposed only its upper edge inorder to prevent buckling. If f this system is followed, the lowerlsection will be inserted Within the groove while in its flat condition,and the anchoring and positioning means will be formed after the twosections of the strip have been joined together.

In practice however, it may be preferable to form the anchoringandpositioning means in the loi 7er section before the joining operationis performed and in this case the major lower portion of the lowersection may be held between two suitably formed clamping jaws, havingrecesses adapted'to accommodate the parts projecting from said section,while the oining operation is performed.

In Fig. 6, I illustrate a strip somewhat similar to the one shown inFigs. 4 and 5, the difference being Athat the sid-es and bottom of thebody 35 ofthe upper section are enveloped by a'shield 34 made of amaterial different from that of said body, the upper edges of saidshield being on a level with the upper edge of the body and thereforeproducing a two color effect therewith.

The shield is soldered or cemented orotherwise secured onto the body 35in any suitable manner, and.v is preferably made of lead or otheranti-slip material, so as to confer to the finished floorv anti-slipproperties in accordance with the invent-ion described An alternativetype of joint between the 'l two sections of the strip is shown in Figs.7 and 8. The strip therein illustrated, comprises an upper section 36and a lower section 37, section 36 being in the form of a drawn barformed withV a longitudinal circular opening 38, communicating with thelower surface of the bar by means of a tangential slot 39 the width ofwhich is substantially equivalent to the thickness of the lower section.Y

When the upper edge of the lower section is inserted through slot 39 andedgewise pressure is applied to the two sections, said upper edge iscompelled to curve over, forming a bead 40 completely filling theVopening 38 and securely retaining the lower section in position.

Also in this case the lower edge only or the major lower portion of thelower section may be inserted in a groove or clamped between twoclamping jaws while the joining operation is performed, according to thegauge of the metal employed.

rIhe strip illustrated in Fig. l is shown in position in Fig. 9 where 4ldesignates the iioor foundation, 42 the lower layer or bed of theterrazzo floor and 43 the upper layer. It will be observed that theupper edge of the strip is on a level with the floor surface and thatthe cup members 32 act as anchoring means for the strip by becomingembedded in the floor composition, and also act as positioning means,their upper edges determining the line of division between th lower andthe upper layer.

In Fig. 10 I illustrate a strip which issomewhat similar to that shownin Figs. 7 and 8 in this respect, that the upper edge of the lowersection is compelled to follow the outline of a groove provided in theupperV section by an operation similar to that described in connectionwith the strip of Figs. 7 and 8. In the same 44 designates the uppersection and 45 the lower section, the upper section being formed with agroove 46 the width of which corresponds to the thickness of the lowersection, said groove being directed upwardly and then being curved toone side. When the upper edge of the lower section is inserted throughsaid groove and endwise pressure is exerted upon the two sections, saidupper edge will be forced to follow the outline of the groove and willtherefore form a laterally extending lip 47,

registering with said groove and securely joining the two sectionstogether.

From the foregoing it will be seen that the two sections of the stripmay be joined by means of a comparatively simple operation which may berapidly and cheaply performed. The joints obtained are positive andeiicient; furthermore, the strip also affords the possibility of usingtwo metals for its manufacture, the upper section being made of brass orother metal selected for its wearing qualities and appearance-and thelower section being made of steel or other metal selected on the basisof its strength and relatively low cost.

The various constructions illustrated are intended for illustrativepurposes onlyand not in a limiting sense, since obviously their detailsmay vary from those shown without departing from the inventive idea; Iaccordingly reserve the right to carry my invention into practice in allthose ways and manners which may enter, fairly, into the scope of theappended claims.

I claim:

l. A iioor strip of the character described, comprising an upper and alower longitudinal section, one of said sections being providedsalongits inner edge with a continuous dovetailed groove, and the othersection having its inner edge slit at lspaced intervals to form a seriesof adjoining lips, said lips being alternately bent to one side and'thento the other of said section to form a `Ystruc ture, said lips beinginserted within said groove and abutting ragainst the sides thereof.v i

2. A floor strip of the character described, comprising an upper and alower longitudinal section, the upper section being provided along itsinner edge with a continuous dovetailed groove, and the lower sectionhaving its inner edge slit at spaced intervals to form a series ofadjoining lips, said lips being alternately bent to one side and then tothe other of said section to form a Y-structure, said lips beinginserted within said groove and abutting against the sides thereof, andanchoring means integral with Ysaid lower section.

3. A floor strip of the character` described, comprising an upper andk alower longitudinal section, the upper section being provided along itsinner edge with a continuous dovetailed groove, and the lower sectionhaving its inner edge slit at spaced intervals to form a series ofadjoining lips, said lips being alternately bent to one side and then tothe other of said section to form a Y-structure, said lips beinginserted within said groove and abutting against the sides thereof, andanchoring means integral with said lower section, said anchoring meansacting also as positioning means for said strip.

PASQUALE GALASSI.

